A fight broke out after a man displayed a doll on a noose during a protest of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home order.
A man attending the Michigan United for Liberty protests on the grounds of the Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, on Thursday was spotted waving an American flag that had a nude doll with brown hair dangling from a noose below. A photographer with MLive was filming the man when another person attempted to steal the flag, leading to an altercation between the two.
Fight erupts at Michigan Capitol over doll with noose around neck https://t.co/hJtWSDwteZ
— MLive (@MLive) May 14, 2020
The fight startled many in the area, and a protest participant with a megaphone called for police to break it up. The man who had been carrying the flag ran away from the crowd and spoke to Michigan State Police within the Capitol. State police said the man, 60, filed a report with them and left without incident. Public information officer Lt. Brian Oleksyk said no injuries occurred during the altercation, and no arrests were made.
“We took his report, we will investigate thoroughly and file our report,” Oleksyk said.
The other person involved in the incident, who grabbed the man’s flag, said she believed his display was an act of “hate speech.”
“Hate crimes are not tolerated in Michigan, end of story. Just so you guys know, I’ll fight that, physically if I have to,” she added.
Jazmine Early, a protest attendee who was not involved in the fight, told MLive that many people were upset by the doll and felt that it was taking away from the purpose of the event.
“He came with something that he thought would catch attention from the media,” Early said. “They started arguing, and he was asked kindly please not do that.”
“Yesterday, we were warned that there would be … people coming from the other side to look like they were on our side. And the media, I’m pretty sure, is going to talk only about that,” she added.
The woman who called for the police to break up the fight as it happened offered similar commentary over the megaphone while watching it unfold.
“This is what the media wanted, and we are giving them what they wanted,” she said. “We have been here peacefully. Michigan United for Liberty has been here peacefully protesting eight times since April 7. We have had zero issues.”
